Star Wars: Episode VIII
by Matt Iorio
Summary: This is a fan fiction sequel of what might occur in Episode VIII. Episode VIII continues right where The Force Awakens left off. Rey has just found legendary Jedi Master Luke Skywalker on the mysterious island of Ach-To while Kylo Ren has retreated to Supreme Leader Snoke, leader of the First Order, after the destruction of Star Killer Base.
1. Chapter 1

The island of Ach-To was eerily quiet. Nothing stirred except the crashing waves in the distance and the blades of grass being pushed around by the gentle breeze. The sun shone brightly on the clear day and cast two prominent shadows on top of the small, rocky outcropping.

The breeze pushed some of her brown hair onto Rey's face. She thought of removing it, but didn't dare move. Her right arm remained outstretched, holding in her hand a lightsaber, an offering to the bearded figure who stood across from her. She was attempting to return the legendary weapon to the man known as Luke Skywalker.

Luke stared at her, his unblinking eyes fixated on the lightsaber. His mouth was slightly agape, in disbelief to what he was seeing. However, it was unclear as to what he was thinking. His blue eyes would not concede any meaning to Rey.

Moments had passed and neither Rey nor Luke had moved. Beginning to feel self-conscious, Rey went to move towards the Jedi Master – but he spoke first.

"You," he uttered in a surprisingly soft voice.

Rey didn't know how to respond.

"You found me … how?" Luke said, his eyes still unblinkingly fixed on Rey.

Rey went to speak, but lost her voice for a moment.

"A droid, one the Resistance had, an R2 unit, it had a map stored in it's memory banks – one that showed most of the galaxy and how to get to you," Rey said.

For a fleeting second, Rey noticed a change in Luke's eyes.

Rey continued. "And another droid had the missing piece. The piece that showed us you were on Ach-To."

Luke still did not move. His mouth closed and his face grew stern. Rey couldn't take it any longer. There was so much talk of Luke Skywalker, the one General Organa and seemingly the whole galaxy wanted to find, and here he was. And he was barely saying anything. Rey became impatient.

"Here, take it," she said, shaking the lightsaber in her hand. "This is yours. I've come to return it to you."

Luke's eyes moved from the saber, to Rey, and back to the saber again. Then, Rey felt a weird sensation. The saber began to wiggle as if it was trying to free itself from Rey's grip. The saber shook loose as Rey opened her hand to let it go. It began to float away from her and eventually it landed in Luke's open hand.

The aging Jedi master grasped the lightsaber with both hands. He examined the weapon thoughtfully. Luke looked at the saber as if looking upon an old friend. Rey looked at his face and half expected a smile to be spreading over it, yet his lips remained tightly shut. Luke looked sharply up from the lightsaber to Rey.

"And how did you find my lightsaber?" he asked.

"I found it on Takodana, in Maz Kanata's tavern," Rey replied. "It was in a chest in a locked chamber. I – I don't really know how I came across it. It seemed to call to me, as Maz put it."

Rey searched Luke's face, but there was still no reaction. She waited a moment for him to speak, but when he didn't, she continued.

"Maz tried to give it to me, but I didn't want it. Especially not after what I saw when I touched it. She must have given it to my friend, Finn, because he had it when we fought," Rey stammered for a moment, "When we fought Kylo Ren."

This time she noticed something in his face. Something flickered in his eyes. It seemed like remembrance, but not fond remembrance. At the same time the corner of his mouth twitched, and Rey recognized that subtle reaction as one of pain, maybe even anguish.

"This saber … called to you?" Luke asked.

"Yes," Rey replied, unaware of what information Luke was looking for.

Luke spoke, unmoving, "Come here."

Rey uneasily started moving forward. She carefully stepped over the small ridges in the ground, evading the loose rocks and exposed roots. She quickly closed the space between her and Luke, and stopped a few feet away from him. When she got close, she noticed the long grey hair and the white streaks in his brown and grey beard. Hard lines had formed on his face, and several creases were prominent on his forehead. His eyes shone a brilliant blue as he looked over Rey.

After a long pause, Luke asked, "What is your name?"

Looking slightly up at Luke as he stood only a few inches taller than her, she responded.

"Rey."


	2. Chapter 2

There were voices. They sounded far off in the distance, but they were there. Finn could hear them. They slowly crept closer. The voices were louder now, but they still sounded far off. It was as if Finn was listening through a closed door. The voices sounded muffled, difficult to discern, but he could hear what they were saying now.

"Finn!" the first voice shouted sounding alarmed.

There was no response. After a brief pause, Finn heard a whooshing sound that eventually turned into a consistent hum. Then an even shorter pause followed by two hums interspersed with what sounded like sparking electricity. More of this followed and eventually a second, deeper voice could be heard.

"Let me teach you!" It said. "I could show you the ways of the Force!"

 _The Force_ , Finn thought. _I know what that is. Someone once told me about it …_

Finn's thoughts were interrupted by more humming, whooshing and sounds of electricity. Then suddenly the noises were followed by a shout. It sounded like someone had shouted in pain. Then a moment later there was another yelp, followed by the sounds of snow crunching underfoot.

It was quiet again.

 _Why is it so quiet?_ Finn thought. _Where did the voices go?_

The silence was broken. A deafening crack pierced the air. The noise was so loud that it resonated all around Finn and seemed to permeate throughout his body. The cracking noise was accompanied by an equally strong rumble, one which shook every fiber in Finn's body. The noise and shaking was almost too much for Finn to handle.

Finn's eyes shot open. He felt his body shake as he gasped for air. Startled, he sat upright. Everything was blurry. After a few seconds his eyes began to adjust and he found he was sitting on a bed. A hospital bed, he realized, after a quick scan of his surroundings, which revealed a heart rate monitor attached to his forearm and various medical equipment all around him.

His body felt sore, as if he had been lying in the same position for a long time.

 _How long have I …_ Finn began to wonder to himself.

"Ah, you're awake," said a familiar voice, cutting him off mid-thought.

Finn looked towards the door to his left, which he realized had been open the whole time. Standing in the doorway was Maz Kanata. She stood there, looking over Finn carefully from behind her large glasses, her eyes magnified to several times their normal size. Her skin was still a warm orange, but this time it had various bruises and bandages sprinkled all over it.

"You've been asleep for some time," Maz began. "You've been recuperating from your injuries."

"My injuries – ow!" winced Finn.

He just noticed the sharp pain emanating down the center of his back.

"Ah, that's right, _that_ injury."

He reached back with his hand, gingerly feeling around and finding the bandages underneath his shirt. The wound underneath them was warm, very warm, as he could feel heat radiating from it.

"That's what a lightsaber will do to you," she said to Finn.

 _Lightsaber … Lightsaber!_

"Rey! What happened to Rey?" he asked frantically, suddenly remembering that Rey was with him when they confronted Kylo Ren on the surface of Starkiller Base.

"Calm down, young one," Maz said while putting her hands up in front of her in a calming motion. "Rey is ok. She is presumably with Luke Skywalker now."

Finn exhaled in relief. He was glad Rey was ok. He wouldn't have been able to forgive himself if something had happened to her. Once he reassured himself that Rey was ok, his thoughts moved to the other piece of information Maz had given him.

"Wait, did you say she's with Luke Skywalker now?" he asked in disbelief, fully knowing what she had already told him.

"Yes, Finn. We found Luke Skywalker," she replied calmly.

"But, how? How did we find him?" he asked, unsure of what else had happened while he was asleep.

"A droid here on D'Qar, one that belonged to Luke himself years ago, contained the rest of the map detailing his whereabouts," she started. "General Organa ordered Rey to travel to him with Chewbacca on the Millennium Falcon."

Maz paused for a moment, and verbalized what they both were wondering. "Why she had Rey go meet with Luke, and not herself? Well, I think we both might know the answer to that one, and it's a very exciting thing to think about."

Maz gave Finn a warm smile. There was something different in her eyes than the last time she had seen him, back in her Tavern on Takodana, which now seemed like an eternity ago. She approached Finn and stood at the side of his bed. Maz carefully placed a hand on Finn's arm, almost as if to comfort him.

"There is something special about that girl. You know it, I know it, and Leia knows it. And soon Luke will know it too," she said. "And eventually, the galaxy may know it."


	3. Chapter 3

"Rey …" Luke whispered so quietly that Rey could barely make out what he had said.

Luke stared at her, deep in thought. Rey once again couldn't make out what he was thinking. Luke's mind was an impenetrable fortress, one which Rey very desperately wanted to know what it contained within its vast depths.

A shadow cast itself over Luke and Rey. The sun that had shone so brightly moments before had now disappeared behind an assortment of clouds. The bright blue sky had seemingly been enveloped by the dark grey rain clouds above. The green grass appeared a dull hue of its earlier self with no sunlight to reflect off of it. Luke looked up towards the sky and had noticed the looming possibility of rainfall.

"Come, Rey," he said to the still confused girl. "It's going to rain. Let's get inside."

Luke, now carrying his old lightsaber in his left hand, motioned with his right for Rey to follow. He finally left his perch on top of the rocky cliff side and began to walk down back the way Rey had first come to meet him. Rey moved to follow, but before doing so she looked just past where Luke had been standing. She noticed a grey tombstone lopsidedly protruding out of the ground. She went to read it, but the name and date etched into the stone had seemingly blurred and faded away from years of ocean spray, wind and rain. She took one last glance then turned away to follow the Jedi master.

Rey stepped carefully over protruding rocks and patches of uneven ground. She kept looking at the ground to see where she was stepping and also back up at Luke to watch where he was leading her. She stood several feet behind him, unsure of whether to follow obediently behind at a safe distance, or to join alongside him. She decided to stay behind.

They reached the bottom of the ridge where Rey had initially made her ascent on the grass up to Luke. They stood on a stone and clay path now with it leading to the right and left. Luke veered left. Rey had originally come from the right, where she had passed through various stone huts and climbed several steep staircases. As Luke turned left, she thought of Chewie and R2-D2 waiting back at the Millennium Falcon.

"Wait!" she shouted in Luke's direction. "Chewbacca and R2-D2 are waiting for me at the Millennium Flacon! Shouldn't we go see them first?"

Without turning around, Luke responded. "We will see them after the rain stops. They won't mind waiting."

There was a brief pause in Luke's speech.

"I'm sure they've both waited for this day for a long time, so they won't mind waiting a little longer."

Rey found it somewhat humorous, as Luke spoke of waiting out the rain that had yet to come. But sure enough, right as Rey had thought it, it began to sprinkle. Light droplets hit the top of her head and began to dot the back of Luke's light brown cloak.

The back of his cloak seemed not a natural brown, but one that acquired its color from age. Rey began to wonder just how long Luke had been on this island, all by himself, a self-imposed exile. This thought opened the floodgates for a myriad of other thoughts. She began to wonder why exactly Luke had come to Ach-To. Surely, as Han had said, he felt responsible for the slaughter of a new generation of Jedi. But why did he come here, why didn't he go after Kylo Ren, start anew with the Jedi once more, or even stay with General Organa and the Resistance. Why here? What was the value of this place? Even if he had found the first Jedi temple, what good would that temple do for him?

Her thoughts subsided as Luke led her down some steps and into a collection of stone huts. The huts were made entirely out of stacked, flat stones. They were impressive little structures, given the singular building material and the fact that they had withstood centuries, maybe even a millennium or more, of wind and rainfall that islands are susceptible to. The first few seemed empty, but as they waded deeper into the sea of huts, Rey noticed that several were filled with items. From the outside the contents of the huts appeared to be books, scrolls, and some small, primitive furniture. But as they got near the last of these small homes, Rey noticed that the last few were less barren. Some were decorated with rugs and tables, and the very last had a bed. Rey deduced that this must be Luke's home.

The rain began to fall harder and faster as they reached the last stone hut. Luke stood next to the doorway, looked to Rey and ushered her in with a sweeping arm. Rey entered the dwelling, not knowing what to expect inside. Straight ahead on the other side of hut was a hearth that started at the floor and gradually rounded into a point. It was dark as there was no fire burning inside of it. To the left was a bed made out of loose straw and several blankets. Around the rest of the single room was a stool, a small table and chair across from the bed on the opposite wall, a stone basin with a small pool of water residing in it, and seemingly endless books and scrolls that covered the remaining space along the walls. Rey also noticed clothes carefully stacked in an open wicker basket at the foot of Luke's straw bed.

"Please, sit," Luke said as he gestured toward his bed, which sat only a few feet away from the fireplace.

"Thank you," responded Rey timidly, as she wasn't sure what kind of interaction was to follow. Up until now her and Luke hadn't said much. She had come to this world to meet the elusive Jedi Master. She even brought him his long lost weapon, but he seemed withdrawn. Maybe it was from the many years living alone on this island, most likely without any other contact from living beings.

Rey sat down on the edge of the bed. She took her satchel, which was still slung over her shoulder, and set it down carefully at her feet. She wasn't sure what to do with it. In fact, she wasn't sure what to do in this entire situation. As she pondered where exactly her bag should be placed, Luke knelt in front of the hearth. He grabbed wood from a pile next to it and placed it on top of the half burnt pieces of wood leftover from the previous fire. Using a piece of flint and a striking stone, or at least Rey assumed so, even though she never saw either in his hands, Luke sparked a fire to life. After a few moments, a small flame could be seen glowing from in between the pieces of wood.

Rey stared at the fire for a moment. _How did he start the fire …_

"Would you like a cup of water?" asked Luke, looking Rey in the eyes for the first time since standing at the top of the cliff.

"Yes," replied Rey, unsure if she should say anything else.

Luke walked over to the basin. He grabbed a ceramic cup sitting on its ledge, scooped in some water, and returned a moment later and handed it to Rey. Rey gratefully accepted it as she realized her mouth had become dry. Luke then took off his cloak and laid it on top of the table. He grabbed the chair from in front of the table and dragged it close to the fire, which had now grown in size. Luke sat down and stared into the depths of the warm hearth.

Rey waited with bated breath.

Luke exhaled slowly. Then he spoke to Rey.

"You've come to return my lightsaber," Luke began. "But why did you _really_ come here?"

Rey swallowed hard.

"The Resistance needs you," she responded bluntly, but with a pleading undertone to her voice.

"Ah, Leia," he said with a smile slowly creeping across his face. "I figured she would be looking for me."

"You know General Organa?"

"Know her? She's my sister," Luke answered with a chuckle.

Rey nearly choked on her water.

Looking slightly amused, Luke added, "My twin sister, actually."

Rey grew wide-eyed. She couldn't believe that General Organa was Luke Skywalker's sister. She never spoke of it, and no one at the Resistance base had mentioned it either. She looked back at Luke and watched his brow furrow.

"That's curious," Luke said. "Why did Leia send you and not come herself?"

Rey's stomach sank. She remembered Han telling her that he had known Luke. She knew Luke had to know, that he had a right to know, but she didn't want to have to tell it to him. Unsure of what to say, she proceeded anyways.

"Leia … had to stay back on D'Qar," she said slowly. "She stayed back for Han Solo's funeral."

Luke's face dropped immediately. He lowered his gaze from Rey to the space in front of the hearth. His smile left him and his face grew sorrowful.

"I had sensed a disturbance in the Force. In fact, I have felt many recently. But one – one in particular felt especially deep, and painful, "Luke said dejectedly.

"I'm so sorry, Luke," Rey said in a feeble attempt to console him. "Han had told me that you two had known each other."

Luke exhaled deeply.

"He was one of my best friends," he said as his voice trailed off.

Luke stared deeply into the depths of the fire for a moment before continuing. The glow from the fireplace cast moving shadows across the features of his face. He seemed lost in the moving flames and burning embers.

"My life truly began around the time I met Han. He helped me leave my home planet and for years we fought against the Empire together. He had saved my life and I had saved his. He truly was a great friend."

Luke seemed to snap out of his momentary trance and looked up at Rey.

"How did he die?"

Rey took a deep breath. Hearing her say in her head what she needed to say to Luke sounded terrible. She had just informed him that his friend had died and now she had to tell him that it was at the hands of Han's son.

"On a mission to Starkiller base," she started, not wanting to continue. "I was being held captive there. Han, along with Chewbacca and my friend Finn, came to rescue me. Once they found me, we had to then damage the base's thermal oscillator. Once the explosives were set …"

Rey stopped. She couldn't bear it. She didn't want to tell Luke. The strength in her voice was gone.

"How did he die?" asked Luke again, pressing for an answer.

"Han confronted Kylo Ren – er – Ben. He tried talking to him, reasoning with him. And then the next thing I remember was a red lightsaber coming out of his back."

Luke abruptly stood up from the chair. The wooden legs slid back through the dirt floor creating small divots in their wake. He went over to the opening that was the doorway of the hut. Standing off to one side of it, her peered out into the rain, which was coming down harder now than before. Cracks of thunder could be heard in the distance.

Luke's gaze appeared to be lost in the sheets of rain that was falling now. The storm clouds were a dark grey and the previously bright and sunny day had turned gloomy and dismal. The ocean water that could be seen off in the distance was no longer peaceful. Its once tranquil surface was being interrupted by rainfall that wouldn't let up. The water seemed to churn with a ferocity that wasn't there before.

Without removing his gaze from the world outside the hut, Luke muttered, seemingly to himself, "I have failed them both."

 _Han and Kylo_ , Rey thought. _Luke thinks he failed Han and Kylo_.

Rey recalled Han telling her and Finn the story of how one of Luke's pupils had turned against him and destroyed his newly formed legion of young Jedi.

 _Kylo was the pupil …_

Rey spoke, with some newly found confidence sparked by her desire to know more.

"Kylo Ren, or Ben Solo, he was your pupil who turned against you, wasn't he?" she said carefully.

Luke still did not turn away from the tumultuous scene outside.

"Yes," he answered. "Yes he was."

"Han had said you had started a new generation of Jedi, that you were training them. But one pupil turned against you and destroyed everything."

There was a momentary pause. In this brief lapse of conversation, Rey could see Luke's shoulders rise and fall, indicating that he was taking a long and deep breath before continuing.

"Han, Leia and I, nearly 30 years ago, fought for the Rebel Alliance. The Galactic Empire, lead by Emperor Palpatine and my father, Darth Vader, were inflicting their will unjustly on much of the galaxy. We wanted to stop them, and eventually we defeated them.

"This ushered in a new period of prosperity. For the next several years, the Rebel Alliance, along with the rebuilding Republic and its constituents, worked together to eradicate any last traces of the Empire. It was the most peace that the galaxy had experienced in years.

"At this time, I was the only remaining Jedi in the galaxy. My mentor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, had died several years earlier at the hands of my father. And at the end of this great Galactic civil war, my father and Emperor Palpatine died. I was the only one left who had been trained in the Jedi ways. And Leia, she was the only other Force-sensitive person that I knew of at the time. So I knew it was time for me to rebuild. The Jedi needed to be once more if the galaxy was to know true peace again.

"Before I was born, there were Jedi temples, places where Jedi masters raised and taught new Jedi. The Jedi were the peacekeepers of the galaxy. So naturally, I knew that I must form a new group of young, Force-sensitive beings and train them to be the next generation of Jedi.

"I searched the galaxy. I found many young Force-sensitive beings. I brought them to Dorean Prime, a planet not too far from D'Qar, the home of the Resistance base. Here, I created my academy, my make-shift Jedi temple, and I had begun to raise a new group of Jedi.

"Now, at the time, Han and Leia had a son - Ben. Ben was Force-sensitive. Having this quality ran in our family. Leia and I's father was previously a Jedi. He passed his force-sensitivity down to us. And naturally, Leia passed these abilities down to Ben.

"Ben was strong in the Force. He was to be trained as a Jedi. At the time that I began training him and the other pupils, he was a little older. And by this time, his relationship with his parents was strained. Leia had formed the Resistance to combat the new threat of the First Order. Han was also very busy with the Resistance. He had fought in the civil war and now he was still by his wife's side fighting in the new war that was consuming the galaxy. Ben resented them for always being off-planet, or away from home. He thought they didn't care about him. He became increasingly distant from them."

Luke breathed heavily.

"I tried training him. I tried. He needed to be in the new generation of Jedi. The galaxy needed him. Leia and Han were worried about him and thought that my training could help Ben. That it could help him stay away from the dark side."

"The dark side?" Rey cut in, her interest piquing again.

"With the Force, there are two sides. The light … and the dark. The light is characterized by peace and calm. Those that use if believe in using it for protection only The dark side, on the other hand, consists of fear, anger, hatred, aggression and greed. To those who are weak-minded, selfish, or succumb to anger and hatred easily, they are very susceptible to the dark side. Ben, being so angry with his parents, loathing them for being somewhat absent during his childhood, was vulnerable to its influence. I thought that I could teach him to suppress his desires to go towards the dark. I thought that I could push him towards the light …

"Unbeknownst to me, the dark side was seeking him. Supreme Leader Snoke, leader of the First Order, was and is strong in the ways of the dark side of the Force. He could feel the dark side within Ben. He could sense the aspects of Darth Vader in him that I couldn't suppress. Snoke reached out to Ben while I was training him, and slowly groomed him to join the First Order. He wanted a pupil, just like how the Sith Lords always had a student learning under them, to stand by his side.

"Snoke spoke to him without having to be there on Dorean Prime. He swayed him to the dark side with promises of revenge and power. He told Ben of the power and influence that his grandfather once held and that's all it took for him to become enamored with Vader.

"One day, Ben was gone. He had left the new Jedi order. He had left Dorean Prime. I had lost my nephew. I would never see Ben Solo again."

Luke stopped and slowly lowered his gaze to the dirt floor.

"A year later, I would meet Kylo Ren for the first time."

Rey had noticed that she had been holding her breath. Her body had grown tense from listening to Luke. She had become so engrossed in listening to his story that she had seemingly forgot to breath. She exhaled, then took in a deep breath, which felt like her first in a long time. She relaxed her shoulders, realizing that she had been holding them higher than normal.

"What happened when you met … Kylo?" Rey asked.

Luke turned around to look at Rey. It was the first time he had turned his body away from the doorway in minutes.

"I was off-planet. I had traveled to D'Qar to consult with Leia and the Resistance. I felt a great disturbance in the Force and knew something was happening on Dorean Prime. I returned as quickly as I could … and …"

Rey leaned forward, moving to the edge of the bed.

"And I arrived to the Jedi Temple with the bodies of all my students laying lifeless on the ground."

Rey emitted a small gasp. This was what she had seen in her vision. This is what she saw when she had touched Luke's lightsaber in Maz Kanata's tavern.

"Instructed by Snoke, he slaughtered them all," Luke continued, his sadness palpable.

"All of my students - _children_ \- slaughtered like animals. They didn't deserve that. If I had been there, I could have stopped it. I could have stopped Kylo Ren and his Knights of Ren."

Rey thought back to her vision. She had seen Kylo and the Knights of Ren standing over her. She remembered one about to strike her down but she was saved by Kylo himself. It was dark, and raining heavily, and her next vision was of a hooded figure with a mechanical hand in the same conditions, with R2-D2 next to them …

 _Luke! I saw that day in my vision! I saw him on Dorean Prime right after the massacre!_

"I arrived just as Kylo and his followers were leaving. When I saw the bodies on the ground, I had nothing left in me to stop them. My new generation of Jedi was gone."

Luke stopped again. Rey could see that his eyes had grown glossy. She could feel the sorrow within Luke. She could _feel_ it.

"I lost everything that day. _Everything_ ," Luke finished.

"Why did you come here?" Rey asked, knowing that there was more to his story.

"It was my fault that they were killed. I was their teacher, I had failed them," he said, wiping at his now wet eyes. "My Jedi were gone. I had nothing left. And now, I had unleashed a monster upon the galaxy. Snoke, the First Order, and Kylo Ren had to be stopped. I've witnessed far too much evil, suffering and loss in my lifetime. The galaxy needs to be at peace again.

"And to stop Snoke and Kylo, I knew I had to grow stronger in the light side of the Force. I had to learn more. I had to grow stronger to be able to defeat Snoke, and see if I it was possible for me to bring Kylo - Ben - back to the light."

Luke now looked into to Rey's eyes.

"And to do that, I searched for this place. I had to go to the first Jedi temple."


	4. Chapter 4

The air seemed to stand still. The tarmac on D'Qar was filled with Resistance personnel. No one stirred. Most had their heads hung low, faces sullen and fighting back tears. Those that could muster the strength to remove their gazes from the ground peered forward at a small group of six individuals carrying an empty platform. At the front of the pallbearers were Leia and Finn.

All at once, the small group began to move forward. The crowd solemnly followed behind, keeping a respectable distance in between The sky overhead was cloudy, almost as dreary as the funeral procession.

The pole atop Finn's shoulder didn't feel heavy. In fact, he barely noticed that it was there at all. He felt slightly numb. He had woken up from his coma only a few days ago and remembered that Han was gone. He could feel the sorrow welling up inside of him. Since leaving the First Order, Han was one of his only true friends, and now he was gone.

Tears began to fall onto his cheeks. His vision began to blur, but he could still make out the warm red and yellow of the burning candles lit all around him. The edges of the tarmac had been lined with candles of various sizes, lighting a path for the pallbearers to follow. As Finn blinked away some tears, he looked to his left; Leia also moved slowly in unison with him, and he noticed that she too was crying.

Leia was the fearless leader of the Resistance. On numerous occasions she had led her group of rebels into battle, usually facing impossible odds. She had stood up to the likes of Darth Vader and Emperor Snoke. There was no room for weakness – ever. But now, the death of the father of her son, brought her to tears. Today, there was no war, no fight, no battle to be won. Today, she mourned the loss of someone that had brought hope to her life many years ago when hope had seemed all but lost.

Leia held her gaze firmly forward. Her chin began to tremble as she was trying to hold it together. She gripped the pole on her shoulder tight with both hands. She didn't want to let go. Part of her wanted to hold onto this empty platform forever, one last remnant of Han.

The procession moved on slowly. No one spoke as all words seemed to be lost. Eventually the pallbearers reached the very end of the tarmac. A green field lay beyond. Finn felt soft ground underfoot as they proceeded onto the grass.

Not too far past the last of the concrete laid a funeral pyre. A large mound of dried wood had been constructed for the platform to be burned on, in Han's memory. When Finn, Leia and the other pallbearers reached the pyre, they carefully placed the platform on top. Once in place, they positioned themselves close by. Leia stood at the forefront of the group, with her eyes remaining on the pyre.

The rest of the crowd closed in, forming a large circle around the pyre. Once the sound of shuffling feet had stopped, Leia turned to face the crowd. Her eyes were red, but the crying had stopped.

She held her gaze on everyone for a long moment.

"Han … was a great man," she began. "In all the years that I knew him, he was many things: a smuggler, a pilot, a rebel, a leader, a husband, and a father. But most importantly, he was a great man, and a true inspiration to us all."

When I first met Han, he wasn't interested in the Rebel cause. He had his own life, away from the thick of it all. But, when he realized that the galaxy, that many innocent people, were in need of his help, he came to their aid. He joined the fight. He did what few would have done. His heart of gold shone brightly through the rubble left in the wake of the Galactic Empire. He helped those who needed it most."

While Han Solo was many of the things that I said before, he was most importantly a great man, and a true friend to all. And to honor his memory, I ask – _I beg_ \- each and every one of you to live life as Han did, and be that little bit of light that the galaxy so desperately needs."

When Leia finished talking, a man approached with a lit torch. She took it and turned back to the pyre. She spoke softly to the pyre, but Finn couldn't make out what she was saying. A few moments later, she laid the torch on the pile of wood.

The dry wood quickly caught on fire. The flames grew and grew, crackling louder as they did. The platform eventually was consumed by the flames, which rose several feet into the air. The heat felt good on Finn's skin, a welcomed warmth to a cold day.

The light from the flames danced across the faces of the onlookers. Some cried silently to themselves, others into the shoulders of those next to them. Finn cried silently as he watched Leia in front of him. She still hadn't turned from the pyre, several minutes after igniting it.

Eventually the crowd began to dissipate. Once night had fallen, the onlookers had slowly thinned out until there were only a handful of people remaining, including Finn. He had become lost in the glowing flames, until a hand at his waist nudged him out of his trance. He looked down to find Maz Kanata at his hip, staring up at him through her large glasses.

"Come, child. It is time for us to move on," she said calmly.

Finn rubbed away some tears.

But what about Leia?" he asked, turning his head toward General Organa.

"She'll be along soon. She is taking her time to grieve, but the tides of the galaxy are turning and she'll be needed shortly. News has reached us that she'll have to attend to."

"News?"

"Yes, look," she responded while gesturing to Leia.

A woman had approached from the depths of the darkness. Finn recognized her as Lieutenant Connix. She spoke quietly to Leia, who nodded her head along in response. After a moment, Connix left and Leia moved to Finn and Maz.

Leia spoke first. "Thank you for being here today. I know Han meant a great deal to you both." She took turns clasping both of their hands in hers to show gratitude. "But now we have other matters to attend to. If you will, please follow me back to the base."

And on her last word, she turned towards the tarmac and they all headed off back to headquarters.


	5. Chapter 5

The First Order cruiser moved effortlessly through the emptiness of space. It sailed unimpaired towards Xanata, a barren and desolate planet, home to the First Order.

As the metallic grey ship reached the atmosphere, it began its descent towards the surface. A large, endless desert opened up in front of the cruiser. It stretched the entire length of the horizon, only to be interrupted by a large compound of several enormous buildings. At the forefront of the compound was the main hangar of the First Order headquarters.

As the cruiser approached the hangar, the main doors began to slide open, permitting it entry. Once inside, it eased its way down to the floor, landing gently.

After a few moments, the ship opened up, its ramp lowering to the ground. From within emerged General Hux, whose blazing red hair could be seen from across the hangar, followed by a group of stormtroopers guiding a floating gurney. On the gurney laid an unconscious Kylo Ren.

Once off the ramp, Hux was met by a particularly tall chrome-clad stormtrooper, Captain Phasma.

"Please notify Supreme Leader Snoke that I have arrived with Kylo Ren," Hux said to Phasma. "I'd also like to meet with him at once. I have some pressing news to relay."

"Yes, General," replied Phasma, standing unnaturally still. "I will speak with the Supreme Leader at once."

Phasma turned sharply and walked off. The stormtroopers followed with the gurney and Ren in tow.

General Hux stood silently outside a large set of metal doors. Two stormtroopers stood guard, unmoving. Hux had changed into a clean First Order uniform. The lights set high above on the walls reflected off his new boots, free of any blemishes.

The com inside one of the troopers' helmets came to life. Hux could hear a faint voice scratchily coming through the helmet radio. The trooper to the right turned towards the door and waved a gloved hand over a scanner on the wall. The door slowly slid open. Hux straightened his black lapel, then entered.

Inside, the room was quite large, with a gothic, cathedral ceiling, and dimly lit by torches in braziers along the walls. It closely resembled the meeting room on Starkiller Base, but with one glaring difference: seated at the far end was the real Supreme Leader Snoke.

Hux crossed the room at a steady pace. The sound of his boots echoed all around. As he approached Snoke, he could begin to make out the distinct features of the Supreme Leader: his lopsided jaw, large, black eyes and the chasm running across the top of his head.

Snoke sat in a large throne-like chair, seemingly carved from stone. It looked very uncomfortable, but exuded a sense of power; a type of power that could command a thousand troops to attack with the wave of a hand. The clacking of Hux's boots subsided as he stopped, remaining a safe distance from Snoke.

"General," Snoke's booming voice curtly greeted.

"Supreme Leader," answered Hux. "Kylo Ren has been delivered to base here on Xanata. He is currently receiving medical attention."

"Yes, as Phasma has informed me. What are the extent of his injuries?"

"He sustained injuries to the back, shoulder and head. It seems that there will be scarring, but he will make a full recovery. As we were arriving to base, he was regaining consciousness."

"Good, good," said Snoke pensively. "Have the medical staff alert me when Ren has regained substantial health."

"Yes, Supreme Leader," replied Hux obediently.

"He will need to continue his training. Our spies have acquired intel that the Resistance has discovered Skywalker's location. If our plans to obtain this information is successful, Ren will need to be strong enough to confront and kill Skywalker."

"Yes, Supreme Leader," said Hux again. "You will be notified at once."

Pressing, Snoke continued. "Phasma also said you had new information to disclose."

"Yes," Hux continued. "I have received word from our sources in the Nassar system that Resistance ships are moving in on the planet of Brakaria. Brakaria appears to be the rumored location of an information broker who knows our headquarters are on Xanata … and that you're also located here."

At this, Snoke slowly rose from his seat. His gaunt, robbed figure cast a shadow over Hux as he stood two feet taller than the general. For the first time since arriving on Xanata, Hux was nervous.

"This 'broker' knows that I'm here …" started Snoke slowly, looking down upon Hux. "This isn't pleasing news."

He walked towards Hux, the shadow becoming larger and larger.

"I do not fear this 'broker', nor the might of the Resistance," Snoke continued. "However, the hidden whereabouts of our base, and myself, give us an advantage that I do not want to relinquish."

Snoke leaned forward, his ashen face closer to Hux's.

"Notify a battalion of troops to prepare to leave. You will lead them to Brakaria and secure this information 'broker', as well as eliminate all Resistance troops you find there. Leave at once."

"Yes, Supreme Leader," Hux responded.

On that, he bowed briefly and turned on his heels to leave.


	6. Chapter 6

After the rain had subsided, Luke asked to be taken to the Millennium Falcon. It was an emotional reunion, one which Rey didn't expect. At the first sight of Luke, R2-D2 lit up; rocking side to side and screeching loudly, he was excited to see his old friend. Chewbacca picked him up and almost squeezed him to death, his large, furry arms tightly wrapped around him.

With night falling quickly, Luke brought them back to the huts. R2 stayed with him while Rey and Chewbacca got their own huts to sleep in. Rey had spoken to Luke a great deal during the rainstorm, but still had an assortment of questions to ask him.

Rey awoke the next morning to the sound of softly crashing waves. Light streamed in through the opening of her hut, shining on her face. She slowly sat up, reorienting herself to the previous day's events. She knew she had to talk to Luke about helping the Resistance and training her as a Jedi. Rey pushed off her wool blanket and stepped out into the sunlight.

The sun felt warm on her skin, a much different feeling than the cold rain from the day before. She stretched while admiring the clear sky above, then walked to Chewbacca's hut. The eight-foot tall Wookie wasn't inside. She glanced around - no one else was in sight. She made her way over to Luke's hut and he wasn't to be found either. Thinking for a moment, she noticed a path leading up the hillside behind the collection of huts.

 _Maybe he's up that way?_

Rey waded through the huts until she reached the stone path. She began to follow it as it wound up the island and out of sight behind an outcropping of rock. When she reached the outcropping, the path forked in several directions.

She stood at the divergence, not knowing which path to take, when she began to feel something pull at her. Rey looked around, half-expecting to see something next to her, but nothing was there.

She could feel it again. Something was pulling her to the left-most path.

Rey didn't feel the sensation on her skin, but deeper, below the surface almost. She felt as if something was pulling on her _being_.

She decided to follow this pull. She climbed a short set of stone steps, until she reached the opening to a cave. She could feel something inside, even _someone_. After taking one last glance around her, Rey entered.

Inside, the cave was shallow. It ran only about thirty feet deep, but had a high, vaulted ceiling with a small opening at the top, which allowed in a single, thin ray of light. This strand of light cast itself down across the other end of the cave and onto the familiar figure of Luke Skywalker.

Rey opened her mouth to talk, but before she could speak, Luke interrupted her.

"Hello, Rey," he began with his back to her. "I see you've found the library."

Luke turned to face Rey and snapped the book shut in his hands.

"The library?" Rey asked confused.

"Well, that's what I call it, at least," answered Luke. "This cave is the only place on the entire island where I found any books."

Luke stepped aside, revealing a single stone shelf carved into the wall with several books resting on it.

"Come look for yourself."

Rey moved to the shelf. The books residing there appeared to be very old; the covers were deeply worn, several shades lighter than their original selves. There were several cracks and creases along the spines, indicating that they had been opened thousands of times. She picked one up, holding it carefully in her hands, feeling the worn leather with her fingertips. On the front cover was a peculiar symbol, one she was unfamiliar with.

"What's this symbol here?" Rey asked, pointing to the symbol.

The symbol featured a pointed line emanating from a central star shape, with winged figures situated on both sides of it.

"That, is the symbol of the Jedi," Luke replied. "These are the writings of the first users of the Force."

Rey looked on in awe. Just a few weeks ago, she had believed the Force to be a myth, the fabric of legend that parents told their children at night to help them sleep. Now, she stood in the birth place of those who learned to control it.

"When I came to Ach-To years ago, I was searching to learn more about the Force. On this island, I've discovered these books along with many other scrolls hidden about, detailing how the first Jedi learned to become one with the Force."

Luke grew somber. "After I lost the new Jedi, I knew I had to come here."

Rey interjected. "And you've been here for years. Have you not learned everything that you need to know to defeat Snoke?"

"I've learned a great deal," Luke continued. "I've learned a lot about Snoke, Kylo Ren, the Force, and the future of the Jedi."

"So why haven't you left?"

"I fear that there's more I need to know. Being here has given me as many answers as questions."

"Be as that may, don't you feel like you should be getting back to the Resistance? They need your help. Leia sent me to ask for your help."

"If I don't fully understand how to defeat Snoke, then what use am I to the Resistance?"

"More than you know," Rey said firmly. "The galaxy needs you."

Luke grew quiet for a moment. Rey took advantage of the silence.

"What if you trained me? In the ways of the Jedi. Maybe one day you could even start training more Jedi too."

Luke's face grew hard. "I could sense that you were Force sensitive when you landed on Ach-To. I figured there had to be more to Leia sending you than just asking for my help."

"Then will you train me to be a Jedi?" Rey asked. "I know you think you can't make a difference yet, but I could be of greater help if I was stronger with the Force."

"No," Luke said definitively. "I will not train you."

Luke started towards the cave entrance.

"Wait, why?" asked Rey perplexedly. "Why won't you train me?"

"There are many things that I still don't know from my years on Ach-To," Luke said. "But one thing I do know, is that the Jedi must be no more."


	7. Chapter 7

Finn exhaled deeply.

"Man, it feels good to be back," he said to no one in particular.

Finn stood in the cockpit of a Resistance cruiser. In front of him, two pilots silently steered while flipping switches and checking various screens. Out the large, main window was the black expanse of space.

"Incoming transmission from General Organa," said one of the pilots to Finn, without turning around.

Finn took a step back. "Alright, let's hear it," Finn replied.

Light shot up from the ground where Finn had just stood. It quickly formed into the unmistakable guise of General Leia Organa.

"Hello, Finn," said the hologram of Leia.

"General," said Finn nodding.

"As you know, you are heading to the planet of Brakaria," Leia began. "Per your briefing, you will be landing just outside of A'Karz. A'Karz is an affluent, First Order-occupied city. According to our intel, the information broker we are looking for will most likely be located around the coordinates I will be sending you. He's been known to frequent that area."

"Yes, General."

"A description will also be sent over shortly."

"What about a name?"

"The only name we have come across is Sicar," Leia said reluctantly. "No indication of species either."

"I can work with Sicar," said Finn confidently.

"I will send over the rest of the information momentarily," said Leia. "This mission is crucial to the efforts of the Resistance. It's imperative that you secure the information regarding the whereabouts of the First Order base."

"I won't let you down, General."

"May the Force be with you."

And with that, the hologram disappeared.

"We'll be making our descent to A'Karz soon," said one of the pilots to Finn. "You should take your seat until we land."

"Will do," replied Finn.

Finn left the cockpit and headed for the next room over. In the adjoining room were several seats along the walls with a table in the center. Finn found a seat and pulled out a transponder. He clicked a button and it glowed to life. Another click and a blurry image appeared on its screen.

The image was of a man, dressed in dark clothing, face mostly covered, standing outside a colorful building. This was Sicar. Underneath the image were some very general descriptors: humanoid, average build, 5'10" - 6'2". Finn clicked again and coordinates popped up.

As Finn was committing the information to memory, a door at the other end of the room whooshed open. In walked a young, short woman, dressed in a Resistance uniform. She had thick gloves on and oil smudges along her sleeves and stomach. Finn didn't pay her much attention until she started reaching behind him.

"Excuse me for a moment," she said neutrally. "Just gotta grab something out of here."

Finn looked up at her for the first time. She had black hair and thin eyes, which had a little bit of attitude in them.

"I need to grab a wrench," she said, this time motioning to the cabinet behind Finn's head.

"Oh, yeah, of course," said Finn, finally realizing he was in her way.

Finn leaned forward, allowing her to open the cabinet and pull out the wrench.

"Thank you," she said while turning to leave.

She stopped, hesitated, then turned back around.

"You're that Finn guy, right?"

"Yeah, that's me."

"Thought so," she started. "Back at the base, I heard how you saved that girl from the First Order. Very noble of you."

Finn blushed.

"Well thank you," Finn replied smiling. "I mean, she's a good friend, and anyone would have done that for their friend."

"I don't know, maybe not anyone."

"You know my name but I don't know yours," Finn asked the woman.

"Name's Rose," she answered. "I'm the mechanic on your cruiser today. I've just been fixing up some stuff in the back."

"Well nice to meet you Rose," said Finn while extending a hand.

Rose removed one of her dirty gloves and shook Finn's hand.

Minutes later, the cruiser landed amongst a thicket of trees a few hundred yards from the outskirts of A'Karz. Finn prepared to leave; he tucked away the transponder in his inner jacket pocket and grabbed a blaster hanging on the wall. He holstered the weapon into his waistband, hidden underneath his jacket.

The pilots lowered the ramp. Finn moved to descend to the grass below, but Rose stopped him before he could.

"Hey, good luck out there," she said. "Be careful and keep an eye out for any First Order scum."

Finn smiled at his new friend.

"I'll be sure to do that," he replied.

On the grass below, Finn gave the cruiser one last look then headed for the city. Once at the edge, he glanced around to make sure no one saw him entering from the woods. He stepped out onto flat cobblestone and made his way into A'Karz.

Finn had never seen anything like A'Karz before. The city was rich with wealth and history, evident in its facade. The cobblestone streets remained from when the city was first built several thousand years ago. The buildings were a mixture of new and old, tall and short, but all extremely colorful. The exteriors of the buildings were beautiful for Finn to look at. He found himself mesmerized by them and the sparkling lake for which the city sat next to before he remembered that he had a mission.

Snapping out of it, he pulled out his transponder. He entered the coordinates and followed the map on his screen. He waded through the crowded streets, filled with people of all different species. They wore beautiful and extravagant clothing, made of the finest materials in the galaxy. Finn felt very out of place in his black pants and brown leather jacket.

Finn was getting close. According to his transponder, he was almost on top of the coordinate point. He walked down another street and turned a corner. The transponder blinked as he had reached his destination.

Finn found himself in a large, circular courtyard, lined with shops, bars and even a casino. He looked around. He spotted people dressed in every color, but no one in all black.

 _At least he'll be easy to pick out_ , he thought.

Just as Finn was looking for all black, he spotted all white: stormtroopers. Three First Order stormtroopers entered the courtyard from a street on the other side. Thinking quickly, Finn hurried into the closest building.

Inside, Finn realized that he had entered a bar. And a pretty nice one too. A being with sea-green tentacles was playing a piano-like instrument on a raised platform in the middle of the room. Finely dressed patrons sat at white cloth tables. A mammoth 50 foot bar sat off to the left, made of beautiful and polished wood. Behind it sat glass shelves running 30 feet high, covered in alcohol from all across the galaxy.

Finn didn't know where to start, so he headed for the bar. He took a seat in the corner where the bartop ended, trying to stay out of sight in case the stormtroopers entered.

A bipedal bartender with two sets of eyes and burnt-orange skin approached Finn.

"What can I do ya for?" he asked.

"Uhhh …" Finn thought. "Scandarian Scotch would be great."

"Coming right up."

The bartender left to fetch Finn's drink.

Finn looked around. Still no sight of Sicar.

As Finn was scanning the room, a woman sat in a barstool just a few down from him. She looked almost human, save for her skin, which had a light blue tinge to it. She wore an elegant gown of deep maroon with short sleeves. Finn turned to her.

"Excuse me," he said politely. "I'm trying to find someone."

She turned her head slowly towards him, looking him up and down with beautiful blue eyes.

"Hm, a human," she began. "I haven't seen a human in here for quite some time."

"Can you help me?" asked Finn.

"It depends," she said mysteriously.

"On what?"

"On who you're looking for," she said coyly. "And if you buy me a drink."

The bartender returned, placing Finn's drink on a napkin in front of him. Finn motioned to him.

"Another one, please."

The bartender nodded and left again.

"So who are you looking for?" the woman asked.

"I'm looking for this man," said Finn while pulling out his transponder. "His name is Sicar."

He showed her the blurry picture of the man dressed in black.

The woman stared at the picture for a moment.

"I may have seen him around here," she began, looking up from the picture at Finn. "I'm guessing by your lack of helmet and battle armor that you're not First Order … The jacket is throwing me off though."

She paused for a moment, then gave Finn a smile.

"Resistance, right?" she asked in a whisper, appearing to already know the answer.

"Yeah, how'd you - ?"

"Well you're not a stormtrooper, and you're not wearing that tasteless all-black uniform either," she explained. "Sicar brokers heavily sought-after information, so it's safe to assume that you're either First Order or Resistance."

"So you do know who Sicar is!"

"Well of course, he's in that private room right now," she said, pointing to a curtain behind Finn.

"Why didn't you tell me this in the first place?"

"I had to make sure I wasn't dealing with First Order," she said, a smile spreading across her face. "After all, I'm pro-Resistance."

The bartender reappeared with a second Scandarian Scotch. The woman nodded her thanks.

"I'll drink to that," said Finn, raising his glass.

They clinked glasses, both taking a sip of the Scandarian alcohol, Finn's much bigger than the woman's. Finn choked on the rough scotch, nearly spitting it all over the bar.

"Your first Scandarian Scotch, I see," she said with a hearty laugh.

"Yeah … I don't get out much," said Finn, his cheeks becoming hot with embarrassment.

Finn set his drink back down and stood up from his stool. He tossed some money onto the bar.

"Thank you so much for your help."

He moved to leave, but doubled back.

"Why did you have me buy you a drink?" he asked the woman curiously.

She shrugged. "I just wanted a drink. And you seemed like someone who would buy me one."

Finn gave her an amused smile.

"Good luck," she said.

The woman turned back to the bar as Finn left to find Sicar.


	8. Chapter 8

Poe Dameron, dressed in pilot gear, walked at a brisk pace down the metallic hallway. BB-8 followed obediently behind, beeping happily along the way.

"Hey, how's it going?" said Poe as a fellow Resistance pilot walked by.

BB-8 beeped at Poe.

"I told you, we're going to see General Organa," answered Poe.

BB-8 beeped again.

"I want to check up on our buddy Finn," he began. "He's on a mission on Brakaria."

More beeps.

"I'm not really sure what he's doing there. Top secret stuff, I think."

Poe and BB-8 reached a grey door. Next to it, a scanner which Poe placed his hand on. The scanner glowed to life, bathing Poe's palm in red light. The scanner beeped twice and the door slid open.

Inside was the Resistance base command center. Computers and holographic interfaces were scattered all about, intertwined with roots and vines that had grown around them. The Resistance personnel never seemed to stay still for more than a few seconds, constantly having somewhere to go, some screen to check or information to relay. At the center of all of this commotion was General Organa and Lieutenant Connix, standing at a large circular table with several holograms floating above it. Finn and BB-8 approached them.

"Morning, General Organa," Poe said to Leia, who was focused on the holograms in front of her. "Any word on Finn's mission on Brakaria?"

"Hello, Poe," she replied, preoccupied.

Leia clicked the holographic screen in front of her a few times. After staring for a moment, she swiped at it, sliding another screen into view.

"We've been monitoring Finn and his crew since they arrived on Brakaria," Leia continued, gesturing to the screen. "They've landed right outside the city of A'Karz. Finn last checked in an hour ago, indicating he was in the city."

BB-8 beeped at Leia, pressing her for more information.

"Finn is attempting to find an individual with information regarding the location of the First Order's base," she answered. "We know of several of their outposts and which planets they occupy, but we've yet to discern where their base of operations is ..."

She paused for a moment then finished, "... or where Supreme Leader Snoke is located."

Poe noticed her face grow grim. BB-8 beeped again, trying to cheer her up.

"I hope he's successful too," said Leia, giving BB-8 a smile.

Just then, the screen in front of her beeped loudly. Leia turned, and swiped over a few screens. The edges of the screen blinked red, indicating trouble.

"Uh-oh," Leia said. "The First Order - they're here."

The commotion in the command center grew louder. People rushed around, giving and taking orders. Lieutenant Connix turned to Leia.

"General, the First Order has entered our airspace. They've sent two squadrons of tie fighters."

A man dressed in a grey Resistance uniform rushed over.

"General," he began in a worried tone. "Our anti-aircraft defenses are being taken down! We've taken a few of their ships, but it won't be long until they break through."

"What?" Leia said confused. "How is this happening?"

"They're attacking with large enough of a force that they're simply overpowering us," he answered.

"Alright, back to your station," Leia ordered. "I'm putting the base on high alert. Be prepared to evacuate if I give the command."

"Yes, General," he replied before rushing off.

Leia pressed a few buttons before turning to Connix.

"Lieutenant Connix, launch the fleet," Leia said. "Get them up in the air as fast as you can. We need a response now."

"I'll get to my X-wing," said Poe turning to leave.

"No!" said Leia stopping him. "I need you elsewhere."

The command center shook. Dust fell from the ceiling as blasts could be heard off in the distance.

"Elsewhere?!" said Poe incredulously. "I need to be out there fighting!"

"Poe, I have something more important for you."

Leia grabbed a transponder from the table in front of her. She handed it to a confused Poe.

"Take this," she began. "I need you to get Finn from Brakaria. The information he is getting is vital to our cause. We can't chance that the First Order picks him up."

"What's this for?" Poe asked regarding the transponder.

"It contains the coordinates for Finn's location. It also has a secure line of communication to his transponder."

Poe looked at her unsure.

"If our base is overtaken, I need you to report to one of our other outposts," said Leia.

The base shook again, this time sending people reeling into their computers.

"Take BB-8 and get to your ship!" Leia shouted over the increasing noise. "Now go!"

"C'mon, BB-8!" said Poe, gesturing to the droid.

Poe and BB-8 ran for the door. Just as they were about to cross through, a loud blast could be heard, but this time much closer than before. The floor shook and the ceiling began to crack. Regaining his balance, Poe looked up as a huge fissure spread above him. He continued to the door but didn't make it in time. A large chunk of the ceiling broke off and fell towards him. He threw his hands up expecting the worst.

But it never came.

Poe looked up and saw that the ceiling had stopped midair, only a few feet above him. He looked at BB-8 and then turned around. Back at the table was Leia, holding her hands up toward the ceiling, seemingly holding it in its place.

"Go!" she yelled at Poe and BB-8, straining to hold the ceiling up.

Poe turned and hurried out the door, closely followed by BB-8. Once they were gone, Leia dropped her hands and let the ceiling crash to the floor. She slumped against the table, exhausted.

"General!" Connix shouted, moving to help Leia.

"No, no, it's ok," she said tiredly.

Leia looked up at her screen.

"We're losing too many ships … they're going to overtake us."

The command center shuddered violently again.

"You need to get out of here," Leia said to Connix. "I'm evacuating the base."

With that, Leia pressed a large button on the table. Red lights began to flash and alarms sounded all around. People began rushing out of the command center.

Leia went to stand but stumbled. She had overexerted herself saving Poe and BB-8. Connix moved to her side, helping her up, ignoring her dissatisfaction at being helped.

As Connix was carrying her away from the table, another part of the ceiling caved in nearby. The blue sky opened up above them, filled with tie fighters and X-wings zooming about firing at one another.

As soon as the sky had appeared, it disappeared. A large, dark First Order cruiser hovered above the hole in the ceiling. It slowly lowered itself through the hole, stopping only a few feet above the rubble. A long ramp opened from its backside, eventually touching down on the command center floor.

"General, we have to go!" pleaded Connix, staring at the ship.

"No, Lieutenant," Leia started. "You won't be able to get out of here with me. You have to go."

"But - ," Connix started.

"No! They're here for me," Leia argued. "Leave me."

Shapes began to form through the smoke from the cruiser. Connix gave Leia one last look, fear painted across her face, then ran out of sight.

From the ship descended four stormtroopers. Their all white armor shone brightly in the dark scene that was the command center. Behind them followed a figure dressed in all black.

The figure approached Leia, now barely standing on her own. She looked up, and saw a black helmet looking down upon her.

"Ben?" she asked.

"I am not your son," responded the figure in a smooth but masculine voice. "I am one of his Knights."

Leia stared at the helmet, which was similar to Kylo Ren's. It was black, but with a longer facemask. Grooves ran vertically down the headpiece. One long slit separated the facemask from the top of the helmet, but Leia couldn't see any eyes in the darkness behind it. She peered down at the rest of him, looking over his long black coat, dark boots, and jagged bracers meant for close-quarter combat. And at his hip, clipped onto his belt, was a lightsaber.

"What do you want with me?" Leia asked, some anger in her voice. "Why am I not already dead?"

"It's not what I want with you," began the Knight of Ren calmly. "But what the Supreme Leader wants with you."

The Knight hesitated for a moment, unmoving.

"He requested that you were captured … alive."

He waved his hand over his shoulder at the stormtroopers behind him.

"Take her to the ship."

Two stormtroopers grabbed her forcefully, picked her up under the arms and dragged her up the platform and onto the ship. The Knight of Ren and remaining stormtroopers followed, disappearing into the depths of the cruiser as the ramp closed behind them.

Meanwhile, the Resistance base hangar was in utter chaos. Poe and BB-8 watched as tie fighters shot into the open hangar, destroying many of the ships docked there. Resistance pilots tried their best to stay out of the line of fire and take off with any ship that hadn't yet been hit.

Poe spotted his X-wing sitting in between the smoking wreckage of several ships.

"C'mon, BB-8!" Poe yelled, gesturing for BB-8 to follow.

They began to run for the X-wing, dodging other pilots and watching out for tie fighters. They approached the ship, but skid to a stop. His X-wing exploded as a tie fighter flew by. Poe threw his arms up in front of his face to shield it from the explosion.

"Over there!" Poe yelled, pointing at a nearby ship. "Get to that cruiser!"

Poe and BB-8 rushed to the cruiser. Luckily, their ship wasn't blown up this time. They boarded quickly, closed the ramp, and took off.

The cruiser shot out of the hangar like a bullet. It soared into the battle above, dodging enemy tie fighters and Resistance ships. Poe steered the ship through explosions and debris, trying to reach the edge of the battle.

Just as Poe reached the outskirts of the fighting, two tie fighters began firing on the cruiser.

"Looks like we're gonna have to shake them before we jump into hyperspace," said Poe to BB-8, who sat next to him in the cockpit. "Hold on!"

Poe banked the ship left, hard. The tie fighters did everything they could to match the turn. BB-8 went sprawling into the wall. He rolled back next to Poe and anchored himself down with some cables.

The cruiser zigzagged through the other ships and darted through clouds of smoke in hopes of losing the First Order fighters. Poe tipped the cruiser forward, preparing to plunge it towards the ground. Just as the tie fighters were upon them, he flipped on the boosters, shooting them away and downward.

"Alright, buddy, I'm going to need your help," said Poe to BB-8, gripping the controls tightly.

BB-8 beeped that he was ready.

"Turn on the secondary boosters."

More beeps. The cruiser shook as it sped up.

The ground was now fast approaching. With two sets of boosters on, the cruiser would reach the ground in a matter of moments.

BB-8 beeped nervously.

"Trust me on this," said Poe. "We're gonna lose 'em."

Poe toggled some switches on the control panel in front of him. The boosters turned off.

"I can only reach the primary boosters, so when I say so, turn on the secondary and tertiary boosters. Got it?"

His co-pilot beeped in understanding.

The cruiser was plummeting towards the ground. The base, blown up hangar and all, was coming into sharp focus. Poe yanked the ship horizontal again.

"Now!" yelled Poe.

All at once, every booster was activated. The cruiser bolted forward, flying just above the Resistance base. The two tie fighters couldn't pull up fast enough and crashed into the ground, exploding on impact.

"Wooo!" shouted Poe, throwing up his hand for a high-five.

BB-8 stared at him.

"Oh, yeah …" Poe said while starting to laugh.

He patted BB-8 on the head. He beeped happily back at him.

Poe tipped the ship up once more and climbed towards outer space. Once outside of the battle, he switched on the boosters again to make sure they got clear this time. Eventually, the fighting disappeared behind them and it grew very quiet. Poe exhaled, then looked at BB-8.

"Time to jump into hyperspace," said Poe. "Here we go."

Poe slowly pushed the hyperdrive lever forward. The black space outside the window turned into streaks of bright blue as the cruiser leapt into hyperspace at lightspeed.


	9. Chapter 9

Rose inspected the transponder in her hands thoughtfully. She furrowed her brow in consternation, trying to figure out why she couldn't get it to work. Then it struck her; she picked up the screw driver next to her, opened up its back, and began to poke around. A moment later, she screwed it back shut and the device glowed to life.

"Got it," she said to herself triumphantly.

She stood up from the bench she was working at and pocketed the transponder. She twisted her torso side-to-side, loosening her back, then moved to the front of the ship.

"Hey, guys," Rose began, ducking her head into the cockpit. "I'm gonna walk around, stretch my legs a bit. I've been cooped up in here a little too long."

"Alright, just keep a safe distance to the cruiser," replied one of the pilots.

Rose left the ship. She stepped out onto the grass, liking that for once she didn't hear her footsteps echoing underneath her. She let out a big yawn and stretched her arms skyward. She set off into the trees to explore.

There wasn't too much vegetation to look at. Being so close to the city, builders had cleared out most of the underbrush for aesthetic and practical reasons. Rose moved along the clear paths between the trees, finding little patches of beautifully colored flowers here and there. She got close to the flowers to inspect them further, but didn't dare touch them. She had no idea whether they were dangerous or not; they were unlike anything she had seen on D'Qar.

After admiring their beauty for a few minutes, she decided to head back to the cruiser. She didn't want to be out too long to avoid being spotted by the First Order.

On her way back, she felt the rough bark of the tall trees and listened to the soft crunch of the grass underneath her boots. She gazed up at the bottom of the canopy, which blocked out the sun and seemingly continued on forever. Just as the Resistance ship came back into view, she heard a crackle - the sound of a radio.

Then nothing.

Then she heard it again. She listened more closely, shutting her eyes so she could concentrate on the sound.

"Report? Over," a voice said through a radio.

"We've spotted a Resistance ship in the Eastern quadrant of the forest," replied a much louder voice. "Do we engage?"

Rose moved to the side quickly, peering around some trees. The louder voice was coming from a Stormtrooper. He was accompanied by a second trooper, dressed in identical battle armor.

She threw her body behind a tree, hoping she hadn't been spotted. Her chest began to rise and fall rapidly as her breathing intensified.

 _Alright, think, Rose, think,_ she thought to herself.

She grabbed at her right hip: nothing was there.

 _Damnit, no blaster_.

She began to pat herself down, feeling the contents of all of her pockets until she felt the transponder.

 _This could work._

She pulled out the transponder. She clicked the button on its head and it blinked on. The front screen was blank, awaiting further instructions.

Rose started working the buttons on the device, eventually connecting to the line of communication with her ship. She waited a moment, then she heard someone pick up on the other end.

"Identify yourself," said one of the pilots.

"Hey, Garrick, it's me, Rose!" she said in a hurried whisper.

"Rose? What are you calling on?"

"A transponder I repaired earlier," she answered. "Listen, I'm about 50 yards out from the ship and there's two Stormtroopers here."

"Ok, wait -" Garrick began until the transponder cut out.

Rose stared at the transponder.

"Garrick? Garrick?!" she frantically called, shaking the device. She hit it a couple of times, but the line still didn't reconnect.

Rose began turning knobs, desperately attempting to call back the ship. Frustration setting in, she smacked the transponder, when it suddenly screeched loudly. The device started going haywire, making all sorts of loud and annoying noises, when the Stormtroopers overheard it.

"Hey, what's that over there?" one said to the other.

Rose peeked her head around the tree again, still trying to calm down the device. The two Stormtroopers spotted her.

"Stay where you are!" one ordered.

Just as they began to move, the Resistance ship's guns trained on the Storm Troopers and fired. The explosion fell short, hitting trees on the other side of the troopers. The blast shook the ground around them, knocking them off their feet.

"Call for backup - I've got the girl!" one Stormtrooper yelled to the other while getting back on his feet.

Rose steadied herself, regaining her balance after the explosion, and took off towards the city. The Stormtrooper tasked with calling for backup started firing on the Resistance ship, while the other set off after Rose.

* * *

Finn pushed aside the red satin curtain and entered the back room. Inside were several large, circular booths, adorned with marble tables, soft seats and curtains that could be drawn for privacy. He looked around and saw that all the booths were empty, except for one in the back, which had its curtains drawn.

A large, burly man with gray skin stood in the middle of the room with his arms crossed, a blaster hooked to his belt. Not knowing who else to talk to, Finn approached the man.

"Hi …" he said, unsure of what to say. "I, uh, am here to speak with Sicar."

The man stared at him. He didn't move.

"About a business transaction."

Still nothing.

"I'm willing to pay 40,000 New Republic units."

At that, the man blinked.

"Prove it," he said in a deep, rough voice.

Finn pulled out his transponder. He clicked a few buttons and brought up the screen showing he had the money ready for transfer.

"One moment," the man said again, this time turning and walking to the booth behind him.

The man pulled back the curtain, ducked his head in for a few moments, then returned to Finn.

"Give me your weapon," he said.

Finn reluctantly handed him his blaster.

"Back booth," the man said, taking his gun and nodding toward the curtained-off table.

Finn approached the back booth. He pulled aside the curtains, revealing a man sitting against the wall, dressed in all black. He had a hood drawn and a cowl pulled up over his face, just like in the picture. Two dark eyes stared at him from within the depths of his hood, looking Finn up and down.

"Sit," a sturdy voice said from under the cowl.

Finn sat, electing not to move too far into the booth. Sicar looked at the curtains, and Finn closed them in response.

"So I'm told you have 40,000 New Republic units with my name on it?" Sicar said.

"Yes - correct," said Finn nervously.

"New Republic units … odd," Sicar began. "Either that's stolen money, or the New Republic needs something - badly."

"What do you mean?" Finn asked.

"I rarely get buyers from the New Republic," Sicar answered. "I deal mostly with those who operate on the black market."

He paused for a moment, then continued.

"The New Republic tries to distance themselves from the First Order. They want to do everything the right way. No black market, no brokers, just intel from reconnaissance. So why does the New Republic come to me now, seeking to buy information?"

"Actually, I'm with the Resistance," Finn corrected.

Sicar straightened up in his seat.

"The Resistance?" he said curiously. "Interesting … now what would the Resistance want from me?"

Finn gulped nervously.

"We heard that you know the whereabouts of the First Order's base," Finn answered. "I've been sent to offer 40,000 New Republic units for that information."

Sicar's eyes narrowed. He stared at Finn, deep in thought.

"It's all right here, on this transponder," said Finn, pulling out his transponder and placing it on the table.

"I trust you," said Sicar, surprising Finn. "I see the Resistance wants to end this conflict by going after Snoke himself."

"You know he's there?" asked Finn, surprised at the mention of Snoke. "How do _you_ know that?"

Sicar reached out his hand.

"Give me the transponder."

Finn hesitated.

"I will give you the information that you seek - for the 40,000," said Sicar, noticing the hesitation.

Finn slid Sicar the transponder.

"I am not an ally of the First Order," continued Sicar. "Not anymore, anyways."

Finn was shocked. Did he just give his money to someone tied to the First Order?

"Don't worry, don't worry," said Sicar, clicking away at the transponder, without looking up. "I have no more ties to that wretched group of extremists."

After a few more moments of pressing buttons, he slid the device back over to Finn.

"There," he said, this time looking at Finn. "The transfer's been completed."

"Hey, you owe me some answers," said Finn, starting to feel like he'd been ripped off.

"And you'll get them," Sicar began. "First, the info you paid for."

Sicar reached into the folds of his black coat and pulled out a small tablet and memory stick. He plugged the stick into the side of the device and began poking at the screen. After a minute, a small green light began to blink at the end of the stick. He pulled it out and gave it to Finn.

"That right there contains the coordinates to the First Order base. It's located on a planet called Xanata. Snoke is based out of that planet, but will leave from time to time on a star destroyer to attend to First Order matters."

Sicar tapped on the tablet and pulled up a map of the galaxy.

"Here is a map of Xanata," said Sicar, handing Finn the tablet.

Finn studied the map while tucking away the memory stick into his breast jacket pocket.

"And now the information you didn't pay for," said Sicar.

Finn looked up at Sicar.

"I know the location of the First Order base … because I've spent a great deal of time there."

"What?!" Finn burst out. "Why the hell were you there? Were you also a Stormtrooper?"

"No," answered Sicar, a quizzical look in his eyes. "I am Sicar, a former Knight of Ren."

Finn instantly straightened up. His whole body tensed, hands clenched tightly on the tablet.

"What is a Knight of Ren doing here?" asked Finn, the anger palpable in his voice.

" _Former_ Knight of Ren," Sicar corrected. "I was trained as a Knight, and served as one for a short amount of time, before abandoning them and their delusional cause."

"Why did you leave?" asked Finn, his body beginning to relax.

"You know the First Order - they think they have a right to the galaxy, that they're actually making a positive difference. I took too many innocent lives before I realized what I was doing was wrong."

Finn detected some sorrow in Sicar's voice.

"It's ok," Finn began. "I was once a part of the First Order too. A Stormtrooper, actually. After my first battle, I made a choice. I ran away as fast as I could."

"You were a Stormtrooper, yet you don't know where the First Order base is?" asked Sicar, confused.

"I was trained and raised in a space station near Jakku. I was in sanitation and infantry, so my knowledge of First Order business outside of my space station was limited, almost non-existent."

Finn returned the tablet to Sicar.

"Sicar," said Finn. "Why didn't you join the Resistance?"

"After serving Snoke, I knew I had to run far away and out of sight if I were to keep from him," he answered. "He is far more powerful than you know. If I don't keep my distance, he'll find me."

Finn grew quiet. Sicar returned the tablet to the folds of his jacket.

"I'd get moving if I were you," continued Sicar. "First Order likes to patrol this block on the hour. They stop in here, too."

"I'll be on my way then," said Finn while getting up.

"Finn," said Sicar, before he could leave. "Good luck."

Finn nodded, then left the booth. He crossed the room, grabbing his blaster from the guard before exiting to the bar.

The bar remained as it was from before. Mostly the same patrons sat eating at their tables, except the blue woman was no longer at the bar-top. No one seemed to notice him as he made his way back to the front door.

As Finn reached the entrance, two Stormtroopers walked in, blocking his path. He stood paralyzed, unsure of what to do. They stared back. A moment passed before either moved.

"Don't move," ordered one Stormtrooper, raising his blaster to Finn.

"Hey, man, what did I do?" asked Finn, trying to act innocently.

"I recognize you from the First Order's 'Wanted' list," he replied. "You're coming with us."

Finn made a move for his blaster.

"Watch it!" the Stormtrooper yelled, shoving his weapon into Finn's chest.

"Alright, alright," said Finn while raising his hands, giving up. "Where are you -"

There were two loud thuds and both Stormtroopers dropped to the ground before Finn could ask where they were taking him. Standing behind the unconscious Stormtroopers was Rose, wielding a stool.

"Rose?" said Finn, utterly confused. "What are you doing here?"

"First Order found our ship - we gotta go," she said, grabbing Finn by the arm and pulling him out the door.


End file.
